The offices of the International Journal of Pokémon Evolution were normally quiet, almost drowsy between issues.
For years, new submissions had slowed to a trickle—most researchers content to refine old models, or re-analyze known data.
Evolutionary breakthroughs were rare.
Entirely new evolutionary papers? Nearly unheard of.
Maybe only changed with the recent five Eeveelutions paper by the young research prodigy.
His work on the Eeveelutions had broken their long drought of evolutionary discovery, and though his age still boggled the mind, he had announced his next research direction openly: happiness-driven evolution, or what he termed emotional energy.
That was why, on the morning the server pinged with twenty manuscripts submitted under the same name, every editor and peer reviewer paused.
Twenty papers.
Not one. Not five.
Twenty.
At first, they assumed it was a glitch.
Twenty separate documents—seventeen new Pokémon evolutions and three major revisions to previously published Eeveelution papers—all neatly formatted, cross-referenced, and tagged for review.
The authors were also clear: Deford and Oak.
The editors froze.
Professor Oak's name was already enough to command instant attention, but paired with the child prodigy whose Eevee research had upended evolutionary science only a month prior?
The weight of it was staggering.
The papers were quickly forwarded to the peer reviewers. One by one, they opened the files, their reactions shifting from casual curiosity to open disbelief.
"Seventeen new pathways?" one reviewer muttered aloud, scrolling faster, his heart pounding. "And three revisions to the Eeveelutions, expanding on Umbreon, Sylveon, and Espeon? How—how is this possible? So soon?"
The first reviewer skimmed Pichu to Pikachu: Emotional Resonance Thresholds in Pichu Species' Evolutionary Pathways.
His eyes widened at the meticulous resonance data, the emotional energy charts, and the flawless documentation of before-and-after states. "This is… this is new evolution work," he whispered, stunned.
"He… he already finished this?" another muttered, half in disbelief.
Across the hall, another had opened Type: Null to Silvally: The Liberation of Identity Through Intimacy Bonds. His chair screeched back as he stood. "This can't be real. He's cracked Type: Null?!"
Others joined in, voices overlapping in a storm of disbelief.
"Budew to Roselia… with measurable happiness thresholds?"
"Lucario—so evolution by bond wasn't just folklore!"
"Snom into Frosmoth—recorded and charted in full biological detail!"
Then came the Eeveelution papers.
One reviewer scrolled through Espeon: Evolutionary Mechanisms under Emotional Resonance, blinking at the updated figures.
Another gasped at Umbreon's paper, now clearly framed under intimacy-driven moonlight evolution.
And when they reached Sylveon's revision—once listed as an unknown orientation, now proven to be a new type of resonance triggered by happiness and affection—the entire editorial board fell into stunned silence.
"This isn't a coincidence," the editor-in-chief finally said, his voice trembling with awe. "This is a unified theory. Happiness isn't just a condition. It's a catalyst across species."
Another reviewer nearly dropped her stylus when she reached the author names again. "Professor Oak is the second author? Then… It's legitimate. He wouldn't put his name here lightly."
Her gaze lingered on the data—meticulously detailed measurements, flawless statistical analysis, and descriptions of post-evolution biology that read like field guides.
The weight of it pressed on them all.
This wasn't just twenty papers. This was a new branch of evolutionary science, written in the span of months.
And the author's name, neatly signed at the bottom of each submission, was the same: Deford.
The editorial board sat in silence, their voices stripped away by awe.
"He said this was his direction," the editor-in-chief whispered, his fingers trembling over the keyboard. "But this quickly? Seventeen new evolutions and three revisions in a month?"
As the hours ticked by, the review board of the International Journal of Pokemon Evolution buzzed like a disturbed hive.
Slack channels, message boards, and private emails filled with fragments of disbelief:
"Seventeen evolutions at once?"
"The emotional resonance model—could this rewrite everything we know about happiness and bonds?"
"This boy… Deford… he's only five, right?"
"No, it must be Oak's work. Oak must have authored it all."
"But the writing—it feels… young. Sharp, but young. It's him. It has to be him."
It wasn't suspicion they felt anymore. It was reverence, tinged with disbelief.
Albert had not only followed through on his word—he had outpaced the very expectations of the academic world.
Rigorous checks followed, of course.
Devon Corporation confirmed every dataset. Professor Oak himself vouched for specimens provided from the Indigo Realm and the Silver Republic, verifying his role as every paper's second author.
Every number is aligned. Every observation held true. The papers were watertight.
And with that, the board knew what they were holding.
Not a hoax. Not a fluke.
A revolution.
When the issue is announced, the academic community should brace itself.
For the first time in history, nearly an entire volume of the International Journal of Pokémon Evolution would carry one name, one author, one mind.
Researcher Deford had promised the world happiness-driven evolution.
Now, impossibly fast, he had delivered.